Lockdown
by Piper Elizabeth
Summary: Complete Jandy fluff.  Takes place right where the couch scene ended in Lockdown.  Andy and Josh spend the rest of the evening together.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Lockdown

**Rating:** T for normal teenage behavior (nothing you wouldn't see on the show).

**Disclaimer:** Kyle XY and its affiliated characters do not belong to me.

**Summary:** Complete Jandy fluff. Takes place right where the couch scene ended in Lockdown. Andy and Josh spend the rest of the evening together.

**Spoilers:** "Lockdown" and I guess all episodes before "Lockdown," just to be safe.

**Chapter 1**

He felt her breathing slow, even, long breaths. Her fingers stopped tracing circles along his left arm. He swept a loose strand of hair away from her face and kissed the top of her head. He watched her chest steadily rising and falling and he realized at that moment just how content he was watching her sleep. Sure, his mom might have had the whole family on lockdown because a crazy girl who was apparently out to get their family was on the loose, and Andy was going in to start chemo the next day, but the moment couldn't have been more perfect.

Josh had never met a girl he felt so comfortable with. He could be himself with her. He didn't have to pretend that he didn't like video games or zombie movies. And he loved that she laughed at his jokes even when no one else understood them. He realized, as his eyes began to droop and his head began to feel too heavy for his spine, that they made the perfect pair. She was everything he ever wanted and he hoped he was the same for her.

What felt like it was only seconds later, Josh could hear someone talking, but he couldn't understand it and he didn't want to. He just wanted to sleep.

"I'm taking my shirt off."

He heard that part distinctly. Was he dreaming? It felt like a dream. He felt warm and safe like he was in a dream. And besides, no one would ever really say that to him unless he was dreaming. As a matter of fact, Andy had said something eerily similar in a dream he had about her just a week before. He had been woken up by Lori before the dream had a chance to continue. He still blamed her for that.

He felt something soft and familiar touch his lips. If this was a dream, he definitely didn't want to wake up.

"Okay, there goes my bra."

His eyes sprang open and he found himself staring directly at her. She laughed and her eyes seemed to sparkle and dance.

"I knew that would get you up," she remarked, rather pleased with herself. She had never considered herself to be the type of person who could use her "feminine talents," as her mother would put it, to get what she wanted, but she liked that it was working for her.

Andy tried to sit up, but Josh held her down, his arms around her waist. Somehow, while Josh was sleeping, Andy had managed to roll over so she was on top of him, facing him.

"Stay," he whispered into her ear.

She settled against his chest as he tightened his grip around her. She rested her head above his heart while her hand found his. He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed it lightly.

"Guess we both fell asleep," she said, thinking about him. Whatever doubts and fears she had about their relationship were gone. The bottom line was, she wanted to be with him. She wanted to be near him. And she wanted him to be there while she fought the disease inside of her.

"Yeah," he murmured, stroking her hair and closing his eyes.

"Looks like your mom…ah…saw us," Andy remarked.

Josh opened his eyes and saw the red and green plaid blanket, which was usually kept neatly folded on the back of the couch, was covering both of them.

"Great, now I'm going to get the don't forget to be responsible if you're having sex talk."

Andy giggled. "Well, at least she trusts us."

"What do you mean?"

"She left us completely alone. She's been in her office with the door closed for more than a half hour. If it were one of my moms, she'd be standing here watching over us like a hawk, ready to strike and kill if you even so much as accidentally bump into me."

"Remind me to never fall asleep on your couch."

Andy smiled and felt her stomach rumble.

"Hungry?" Josh asked, feeling the rumble against his own chest.

"Famished," she replied. After all, she had barely eaten all day. Sure, Josh had put out quite the junk food sprawl, but she barely touched anything. She was too nervous about telling him about the chemo. Now that they were over the awkwardness of it all, she was starving.

Josh reached over to the table and picked up the bowl of cheese curls. He grabbed one and held it out for her.

"I was hoping for something a little more…substantial," she said, eyeing the cheese curl.

"Take it or leave it."

Andy reached up to grab it, but Josh pulled it away. Smirking, he put half of it in his mouth, leaving half sticking out. Without hesitation, Andy brought her mouth to his, grabbing the cheese curl and his lips at the same time. He felt her tongue grazing his teeth and his mind completely shut down. He could think of nothing else except her body pressed against his and her lips, which were currently devouring his. She kissed him with more greed and hunger and passion than he thought humanly possible.

When she pulled away, he felt empty inside. All he wanted was for her to do whatever it was that she had done again.

"Uh-uh," she said, playfully pushing him back down as he reached up to kiss her. "Now I want real food." She disentangled herself from him, despite his resistance, and stood. "And you're going to make me something."

She strode off towards the kitchen.

Author's Note:

Okay, I said I would take a break from writing Jandy fics for a short while (especially since I'm trying to finish up a Harry Potter fic that I've been working on for a while), but I just couldn't stop myself from writing. I just love Jandy too much! This was supposed to be a quick one-shot, but, since I'm basically incapable of writing short stories, it's turned into a little more than that. This is probably my first complete fluff story I've ever written and I love it so far! Not writing about angst and drama is actually a lot of fun! Anyway, stay tuned for another fluff-filled chapter coming soon!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

As Josh entered the kitchen, he found her standing at the refrigerator, partially bent over so that she could peer inside. Blocked by the refrigerator door, he saw her only from the waist down.

"Nice view," he commented, smirking.

Andy slammed the door closed and glared at him playfully.

"Are you checking out my butt?" She asked.

"Yup," Josh answered simply.

She blushed, although she wasn't quite sure why. Maybe it was just the idea that Josh found her so attractive. When they first starting seeing each other, she had been afraid that she couldn't compare to the girls he was attracted to, but her insecurities were vanishing every second.

"So, what are you making me?" She asked, perching on a nearby stool.

"Trust me, you're safer with takeout. And takeout just happens to be my specialty." Josh opened a drawer beneath the sink and pulled out a handful of menus. He held them out to her. "Chinese? Italian? Pizza?"

"French toast," she replied.

"Ah…sorry, but French toast R' Us is closed tonight. Any other suggestions?"

Andy crossed her legs and leaned her elbows on her knee. She rested her head in her hands, bending slightly. She knew full well that she was probably showing more cleavage than necessary, but as she saw Josh staring at her, she knew she would be getting her French toast.

"French toast it is," he said, swallowing.

He wondered to himself how he had missed just how sexy Andy was when he first met her. Then again, how was he supposed to know what was under all the T-shirts and skirts she wore? Now that he did know, however, he was far from disappointed. And he couldn't wait to learn more.

Josh began to rummage through various cabinets. He took out a loaf of white bread, eggs, milk, a bowl, a frying pan, a bottle of vegetable spray, and a spatula.

"Don't expect this to become a habit," Josh stated as he cracked the eggs into the bowl.

"Oh, I don't know," Andy remarked, sliding off the stool. "I could get used to this." She walked up to him and stuck her finger into the bowl. "But I could do without the eggshells." She pulled out her finger. A small, white piece of shell was stuck to it.

"Hey, I never claimed to be Emeril," Josh said, pouring an unmeasured amount of milk into the bowl.

Andy threw the small shell away and hopped back onto her stool. She smiled as Josh sprayed the pan and then began to dip the bread into the egg and milk mixture. He made a complete mess, sloshing the liquid all around the outside of the bowl and onto the counter, but he managed to get the two sopping pieces of bread into the pan without much incident.

"Where're the glasses?" Andy asked.

"Huh?" Josh replied, concentrating solely on the French toast. He knew it was just bread and eggs and milk, but he wanted it to be perfect.

"You know, those things are usually cylindrical and made of glass. Or plastic, I suppose if you still need your sippy cup."

"That was so funny I forgot to laugh," Josh said. She rolled her eyes at him, knowing that his sense of humor was part of the reason why she found him so attractive. "They're in the cabinet next to the refrigerator."

Andy began to walk over to the refrigerator. As she passed Josh, he grabbed her hand. She tried to pull away from him, but he held tightly.

"Josh!" She said playfully.

"Chef Josh says you can't pass until you pay the toll," he stated smugly, pulling her towards him.

"So it's Chef Josh now, huh?"

"Yup."

"Well, in that case."

Andy gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and attempted to once again move away from him. He pulled her back, crushing her body against his.

"Nope. Not good enough."

"Well, if Chef Josh starts getting too picky, I'm just going to have to start eating at a different restaurant."

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Josh remarked, pressing his lips against hers. He cupped her cheek with his hand. It was a perfect fit.

"Josh," she whispered against his lips.

"Mmm?" He muttered, kissing her more deeply.

"The Fr…" she could feel her knees growing weak as his hand moved from her cheek to her hair. She pulled away from him, knowing that she had to stop him now or he would never stop until it was too late. "The French toast is burning!"

Josh whirled around and turned the stove off. Andy giggled as Josh picked up one of the pieces of bread with the spatula. One side of it was completely black. The other piece, although darker than it should have been, still looked somewhat edible.

"Looks like Chef Josh should go back to culinary school," Andy joked, getting two glasses from the cabinet.

"I told you we should have gotten takeout."

"I'm sure it's fine."

Andy walked over to him and ripped off a piece of the French toast. She put it in her mouth and began to chew it. As the bread, which felt more like she was eating a brick, hit her taste buds, she attempted a fake smile.

"Delicious," she lied, having a difficult time swallowing the small piece. It was definitely one of the worst things she had ever tasted and her face reflected it.

"Come on, it can't be that bad," he said.

"Then you try it," Andy replied, finally swallowing it.

Josh put a rather large piece in his own mouth. He immediately spit it back out in his hand.

"Ugh! That's terrible!"

"Yeah, stick to takeout," Andy remarked, smirking.

Josh picked up the pan and scraped the rest of the French toast into the garbage. He dumped the pan in the sink and walked over to the refrigerator.

"What are you doing?" Andy questioned, filling her glass with water. She had to get the bad taste out of her mouth.

Josh opened the freezer door and pulled out a box.

"How about some Egos instead?"

Andy took a drink and smiled.

"My favorite." She took another sip, the taste still lingering. "I just have one question."

"What's that?" Josh asked, opening the box.

"Do you have any whipped cream?"

Author's Note:

Okay, I know I probably shouldn't say this because I'm the author, but I absolutely love this story! Writing it (so far) has just been a blast. Again, it's not often I write complete fluff and I'm enjoying the break! More will be coming soon!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

As Josh put two egos into the toaster, Andy searched through the refrigerator for a can of whipped cream. She found one behind a half-full jar of mayonnaise and a takeout box of left over Chinese food.

"And what exactly is the whipped cream for?" Josh asked, getting down two plates from the same cabinet that held the glasses.

"Let me give you a piece of advice…" Andy said, taking the whipped cream out and setting it down on the table. "If asks for a can of whipped cream, don't ask her what it's for. Just go with it."

"If we were in my bedroom, I would agree with you." Josh cocked his eyebrow, realizing that he possibly just came up with the best scenario he could ever imagine. "Speaking of which, we can forget the Egos altogether and head up there to..."

"Forget about it," she replied, smiling. "Got any strawberries?"

She headed back to search the refrigerator.

"Strawberries and whipped cream? What ever happened to waffles with good old maple syrup?"

"Have you never had waffles with strawberry and whipped cream?"

"Uhh…no."

"Well then, Josh Tregar, you are in for a treat."

"I'd rather bring the whipped cream up to my bedroom," he mumbled under his breath.

"I heard that," Andy said, her head back in the refrigerator.

The waffles popped up out of the toaster. Josh picked them up and dumped them on a plate. He put two more waffles in the toaster and brought the plate to the table.

"No strawberries," Andy stated, "but we've got blueberries."

She brought the blueberries over to the sink and rinsed them. As she brought them over to the table in a bowl, Josh pulled the second set of waffles out of the toaster and put them on a plate. On his way to the table, he grabbed a set of silverware for both of them.

"Thank you," Andy said as Josh placed the plate and utensils on the table and then pulled out the chair for her. She was impressed that he remembered the chair tip from when she taught him how to have the perfect date.

They both sat.

"Now, how does this work?" Josh asked, eying the blueberries and whipped cream.

"I can't believe you've never had waffles with whipped cream."

"Sorry, we're a syrup family."

"Well, you'll have to come over to my house for breakfast next week and have a Jensen family breakfast complete with pancakes, French toast, and waffles." Andy picked up the can of whipped cream and sprayed a thick layer of it onto her waffles. "Not to mention that at every breakfast we have whipped cream and syrup. My moms like to go all out. Although, I wouldn't recommend the syrup and whipped cream together. It's got a funky aftertaste."

Andy picked a blueberry out of the bowl and ate it. She looked over at Josh, who was staring directly at her.

"What?" She asked.

"I'd like that," he answered, thinking about what she had just said. Hours ago, she was telling him that they would no longer be able to see each other. Now, she was inviting him to breakfast. Just the fact that she was talking about their future together made him smile.

"Alright, what?" Andy repeated.

"What?" He replied, picking up the whipped cream and putting it on his waffles.

"You've got that…look."

"What look?"

"The look you get when you…look at me."

"I don't have a look when I look at you."

"Yes you do."

"No, I don't."

"Yes, you do!"

Andy scooped some of the whipped cream off her plate and wiped it on his nose.

"You look ridiculous," she said, laughing.

"Thanks," Josh replied, wiping the cream off.

"Now stop looking at me," she said, dumping half the bowl of blueberries over her waffles.

"I can't," he said, reaching for her hand. "You're too beautiful to stop looking at."

Andy blushed as Josh squeezed her hand and gave her a swift kiss on the cheek. They ate in silence, each stealing glimpses of each other, but pretending not to.

"It's only fair," Andy said when they finished, "that, since you did the cooking, I'll do the dishes."

"I have a better idea," Josh stated, putting her empty plate on top of his. "You wash the dishes, I'll dry. That way it'll give us more time to…"

"To what exactly?" Josh's mom asked as she entered.

"To…play G-Force," Josh quickly answered.

Andy giggled and grabbed her dish. She walked over to the sink with it and began to rinse it with water.

"It doesn't seem very nice that you're making your guest do the dishes," Nicole said, picking up a few of the blueberries that were left in the bowl and popping them into her mouth.

"Hey, she offered."

Nicole rolled her eyes.

"Well, I'll tell you what, I'll do the dishes and let you two have some time together." Josh grinned, surprised that his mother was being so lenient.

"Thanks mom," Josh said.

"Really, Mrs. Tregar, I don't mind," Andy assured her, picking up a yellow sponge.

"Let her do the dishes," Josh said, walking off towards the living room. "Besides, she likes it."

This time it was Andy who rolled her eyes.

"Men," she scoffed. "They think women actually like to be slaves in the kitchen."

Nicole laughed and took the sponge from Andy.

"Really Andy, go ahead."

"You know, you're pretty cool, Mrs. Tregar," Andy commented. "Way cooler than either of my moms."

"Thanks, I think," Nicole said.

"No problem."

Andy headed off after Josh, leaving Nicole shaking her head. Josh patted the seat next to him on the couch. Andy sat beside him.

"Oh, and by the way," Nicole said, poking her head into the room. "Cool mom says no going into your bedroom with the door closed."

Author's Note:

I hope your enjoying this story so far because I'm having a ball writing it! More soon! Oh, and I apologize for spelling whipped cream long in the last chapter. I realized after I posted it that I spelled it wrong and, even though I tried to fix it, it didn't work. That's what I get for being my own editor!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

An hour later, Andy had not only successfully beaten Josh once, but twice, at G-Force. They had also successfully eaten the entire bowl of cheese curls as well as a number of the rice krispy treats that Josh had made for Andy earlier in the day.

"Ha!" Josh exclaimed, putting his game controller down.

"Ha what?" Andy asked, looking over at him.

"I just killed you."

"Yeah, but I've still got three lives left. That's two more than you have." She clicked one of the buttons on the controller repeatedly. "Make that three," she said as Josh's character fell dead on the screen.

"Why do I have to find the one girl who's better at video games than me?" Josh asked, putting his controller down.

"Just lucky I guess."

Josh leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

"How many times do I have to tell you that that's not how you do it?" Andy whispered, capturing his lips with hers. She dropped the game controller on the ground as she succumbed to the kiss. Josh ran his hand down her torso as they fell back onto the couch together.

"Yuck. Spare me," Lori said, making a gagging sound as she entered the living room.

Josh scrambled off of Andy, wiping his lips. Andy sat up and looked down at the floor sheepishly, feeling like she had just been caught stealing from a convenience store. Lori took a seat next to Josh on the couch.

"I don't remember inviting you," Josh stated, wishing that Lori had stayed upstairs where she came from.

"My DVD player's broken," Lori explained, grabbing the remote control.

"And let me guess, you need to watch a cheesy chick flick to drown your sorrows about not having a boyfriend, am I right?"

"You have my permission to hit him," Andy piped in.

"She's definitely a keeper," Lori commented as she lightly punched Josh in the arm.

"I'm glad you two can bond over…feminism or whatever you want to call it, but we were having a private moment here."

"Private or not, Hilary's coming over for a Gilmore Girls marathon."

"Wasn't she already over today?" Josh asked.

"Unlike your friends, Josh, my friends actually like to spend the whole day with me."

"She does have a point, Josh," Andy replied. "I could do half a day, but a whole day's pushing it."

"Ooh, I like her," Lori stated, giving Andy a high-five over Josh's head.

"Alright," Josh said, standing up. "We're leaving before you two make any more jokes at my expense."

"Oh, but it's so much fun," Lori exclaimed, turning off G-Force and turning the TV back to cable.

"Come on," Josh said, standing up.

"Maybe she doesn't want to go with you," Lori remarked, flipping through channels.

"Trust me, she'd rather be with me than you," Josh replied.

Andy shrugged as she stood up.

"He's got a point," she said.

Josh reached for her hand as they walked out of the living room.

"What about your mom?" Andy asked as they neared the stairs.

"What about her?"

Josh began walking up, pulling Andy behind him.

"You know the whole, cool mom says you no going into your bedroom with the door closed."

"We won't close the door," Josh stated, as they got to the top of the stairs. He walked into his room, but Andy stopped at the doorway.

"Why'd you stop?" He asked, keeping her hand in his.

"I should go," she said.

"Go?"

"Yeah," she muttered quietly. He began to massage the back of her hand with his thumb.

"Look, Andy, we don't have to…I mean, we're not going to do anything you don't want to do."

Andy couldn't help but laugh, which turned the tips of Josh's ears red. She loved that he tried to say and do everything just right.

"It's not that," she assured him, squeezing his hand. "I just…I have a big day tomorrow."

"Right," he responded, not knowing what else to say.

They had been having such an amazing time that Josh had completely forgotten that Andy was going to be starting chemo tomorrow. He still wanted to talk to her about it. He had so many questions floating around in his mind. Sure, he had gone online and researched cancer and chemo when Andy first told him she had cancer, but that wasn't enough. He needed the information from her.

"And my mom's probably want me home. We…ah…have this thing."

"Thing?"

Andy looked down at the floor, something she had the tendency to do whenever she was embarrassed. She had never before shared with a person, beside her moms, anything that had to do with cancer. Even though she knew Josh wanted to know, she had a difficult time opening up to him. A little afraid, she took her hand from his.

"Every night before I go in for tests or treatment…my moms and I…we get all this ice cream and toppings and things and we have ice cream sundaes and we…we sit around in the living room on the floor and…and we color."

"Color?"

She began to chew on her fingernails.

"It was just something we did when I was a kid. It always calmed me down so we've just…always done it. I know it's stupid and I'm too old to color, but…"

"I think it's great," Josh interrupted.

"I've never told anyone that before," Andy admitted as her hand found his once again.

"I'm glad you told me. And no one is ever too old to color."

Andy smiled. "But anyway, I should go."

"I'll drive you home."

"No, that's okay. I'd rather walk."

"Then I'll walk you home."

"Josh, you're on lockdown, remember?"

"You think I'm going to let you walk home in the dark when there's some crazy girl on the loose?"

"She's after your family, not me."

"Yeah, my family and possibly everyone we care about. There's no way I'm letting you go out there alone."

Andy couldn't deny the heat that rose in her cheeks. He had just admitted, for the second time that day, that he cared about her. That was definitely something she could get used to.

"And how do you plan on getting out of the house?" She asked.

"Easy," Josh said, grinning.

Author's Note:

Thank you to everyone who has been reading and reviewing! I love reading your comments! Stay tuned for more soon!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Josh headed downstairs, taking the steps two at a time. Andy followed him, wondering what he was up to. She knew full well that his mother was still in the kitchen doing the dishes and that she would eventually realize that they were missing.

He strode over to the couch in the living room and plopped down right beside Lori. Andy hung back, standing behind the couch.

"Didn't I already get rid of you once this evening?" Lori asked as she munched on what was left of the cheese curls.

"I need you to cover for me," Josh said quietly.

"I am not going to cover for you so you two can go upstairs and have sex."

"Would you get your mind out of the gutter? I'm just walking Andy home."

Lori looked back at Andy who nodded her head.

"In case I get lost," Andy remarked, smiling.

"And what exactly am I supposed to tell mom?" Lori questioned.

"I don't know. You're the one who could make sneaking out of the house your career."

"True," Lori said, proud of her sneaking out accomplishments. She sighed. "Alright, I'll cover for you."

"Thanks," Josh exclaimed.

"But only because I believe in young love," Lori added. "And besides, next time I need a favor, I don't want to hear any complaining."

Josh shook her hand.

"Deal," he said.

As he stood up, he noticed Andy's scarf that she had taken off when she had first arrived stuck between the cushions. He picked p the scarf and walked over to her. He put it around her shoulders and gently wrapped it around neck twice.

"You two disgust me," Lori stated. "You're just too cute."

They both smiled at each other and walked out the front door. Andy shivered as the cold air assaulted her body. Josh immediately put his arm around her.

"You want me to grab you a jacket or something?" He asked.

Neither of them had realized just how cold, or late, it had become. Andy nodded. Within seconds, Josh had slipped back into the house, grabbed two sweatshirts from the hall closet, and was back outside standing next to her. He offered her one of the sweatshirts. She pulled it over her head. Josh brushed a piece of hair away from her face as she adjusted the oversized sweatshirt.

"Wow," he said as she pulled the scarf out from underneath the sweatshirt to make it less bulky.

"Wow what?" She asked as he put on his own sweatshirt.

"If I had known you were going to look that good in my clothes, I would have given you my whole wardrobe."

"Shut up," she said, playfully hitting him on the shoulder. She began to walk down the steps as Josh stayed behind. "And stop checking out my butt."

He smirked and quickly caught up with her. They walked together, side by side in silence down the street. As they turned the corner to the main road, Josh bumped his hip against hers. She reciprocated by knocking into him and giggling. He put his arm around her shoulders and they continued to walk.

Minutes later, Andy's house came into view. They walked slowly up her front lawn, trying to savor the moment. There was nothing special about walking together, but, for whatever reason, it just felt special.

"Well…" Andy began as they reached her front door. "I guess this is goodbye then."

"Not goodbye. Just goodnight."

Andy yanked on his sweatshirt, pulling him towards her. She crushed her mouth against his, knowing that this could very well be one of their last real kisses for a long time. They kissed until they could no longer breathe.

"Goodnight," Andy whispered. She turned and put her hand on the knob.

"Andy…"

"Josh…" she said at the exact same time, turning around to face him.

"Go ahead."

"No, you go," Andy stated.

Josh shoved his hands in the front pocket of his sweatshirt and began to shuffle his feet. He looked in every direction, except at her.

"I…would you…would you be my girlfriend…officially?"

He met her eyes and saw that they were sparkling.

"I was hoping you'd ask me that."

"Is that a yes?"

"That's a definitely."

She launched herself into his arms, hugging him. She cradled her head against his neck as his arms came to rest around her waist.

"I was hoping you'd say that," he whispered into her hair.

"And now there's something I have to ask you."

He pulled away just enough so that he could see her, but they were still holding on to one another. He could see the look of concern wash over her face.

"What is it?" He asked, urging her to talk.

"Before I say it, I want you to know that you can say no."

"Okay."

"I mean, I won't hate you if you do say no."

"I got it, I can say no. Now what is it?"

She took a deep breath. "Would you come to the hospital after my chemo tomorrow?"

Josh thought for a moment, contemplating what she had said. They had come a long way in such a short time, from Andy deciding that they couldn't see each other anymore to her inviting him to be with her.

"No," he finally said.

"Oh." She tried not to sound disappointed, but she couldn't help it. She had opened up to him and he had shot her down.

"I won't come after chemo tomorrow. I want to be there after chemo, during chemo, and before chemo. I want to be there for everything, if you'll let me."

Andy smiled as a tear came to her eye.

"It's not going to be easy."

"Nothing worth doing ever is."

She pressed her lips lightly to his. It amazed her that he always seemed to know quite what to say. Others might have seen him as a typical teenager who cared only about himself, but she knew better. She knew the real Josh.

The front light turned on over the door. Andy immediately pushed Josh away.

"They're not going to skin me are they?" Josh asked as the front door swung open.

"Andy," one of her moms said.

Josh glanced over at her. He was surprised to see that she looked very similar to his own mother. She had short blonde hair and was wearing a simple, red button down shirt and Jeans. He wasn't exactly sure what he expected, but he definitely wasn't expecting anyone so normal.

"Mom," Andy replied, hoping that her mother wouldn't do anything to embarrass her, or worse, drive Josh away. "This is Josh."

Andy's mom extended her hand and shook Josh's.

"It's nice to finally meet you, Josh. Andy's told us a lot about you." An awkward pause fell over them. "Well, honey, are you going to stand out here all night or are you going to invite your guest in?"

Author's Note:

This chapter was originally going to be the last chapter of this story with Josh asking Andy if she'd be his girlfriend. But, I just love this story so much so there are going to be a few more chapters to go! I hope you keep reading and thanks to everyone who has read my story so far!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Andy's mother slipped back inside the house, leaving the front door open. Josh glanced at the door as if it was a portal to an unknown world.

"They're not going to feed me to the pit-bull you've got hiding out back if I so much as touch you, are they?" He asked, looking back at Andy.

"That depends," Andy replied, raising an eyebrow. "Where do you plan on touching me?"

Josh smirked, loving that in such a short time, they had grown so comfortable with each other.

"How about here?" He asked, caressing her cheek with his index finger. She leaned into his touch. "Or here?" He put his other hand at her hip. "Or here?" His hand moved to her back, pushing her closer. "Or here?" His nose nuzzled her neck as he began to place light kisses against her jaw.

"Yeah," she murmured, gasping. "That'll definitely get you into trouble."

He nipped at her ear as his hand roamed a little lower.

"Andy! The ice cream's melting!" Her mother yelled from inside the house.

Josh gave her one last quick kiss on the lips before backing away. He had almost forgotten that Andy's mothers were right inside.

Andy giggled as Josh gave her a little pat on the bottom. They walked up the steps, but Josh hesitated at the door, not sure what to expect. On the one hand, he was excited and nervous about meeting Andy's moms. He had never been too comfortable around adults, perhaps because he associated adults with teachers and doctors, none of whom he particularly liked. He never knew what to say and he simply felt awkward around them. Not to mention that he didn't have much experience with gay people and he didn't quite know what to expect.

Sensing his reluctance, Andy reached for his hand and they walked together into the house.

As she led them through the living room, Josh realized that the house was similar to his own. Aside from the Rosie the Riveter poster that hung over the brick fireplace in the living room and a collection of CD's that could rival a CD store, the house was normal and it gave Josh the feeling of home.

"Mom, Ma…" Andy said, squeezing his hand as they entered the kitchen.

Andy's two moms were standing at the island in the middle of the kitchen, surrounded by ice cream cartons and various toppings. Andy's mom, whom Josh had met outside, was holding a bowl of ice cream in one hand and a jar of rainbow sprinkles in the other. She smiled sweetly at him and winked. Her other mother, with long black hair that fell well below her lower back, was scooping ice cream into her dish. She stopped as Josh walked in and stared at him. No, she glared. Josh could feel her eyes searing through him. He tried not to look directly at her, but he couldn't help it.

"This is…my boyfriend, Josh."

Forgetting the fact that he was being stared down by what appeared to be a very angry woman, Josh couldn't help but smile at what Andy had said. Her boyfriend. He liked the sound of it. He almost wished someone else were in the room just so he could introduce Andy as his girlfriend. He just wanted to hear himself say it out loud.

"Where are my manners?" Andy's 'nice' mother exclaimed, putting down the sprinkles she had in her hand. "I completely forgot to introduce myself outside." She shook Josh's hand. "I'm Carol and this evil looking lady over her is Sarah." Carol leaned in closer to Josh, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Don't mind her. She just doesn't like the idea that our little girl is growing up."

"Mom!" Andy whined, rolling her eyes.

Carol smiled as only a mother who had just embarrassed her child could.

"We got your favorite, honey," Sarah said, speaking for the first time. Josh was surprised at how sweet her voice sounded considered the death stares he had been getting from her. She held up a carton of ice cream. "Mint chocolate chip."

"Thanks ma," Andy said, smiling. She had a severe weakness for mint chocolate chip ice cream.

"Well, you two make yourselves some sundaes and join us in the living room when you're ready."

With their ice cream bowls in hand, they both walked off to the living room, Carol's arm around Sarah's waist. Josh watched them go, seeing for the first time two people who really loved each other, despite their gender and sexuality. And he realized, possibly for the first time, that when two people are in love, that's all that matters.

"What?" Andy asked, noticing him staring at them.

"I don't think your mom likes me very much," he remarked as Andy walked behind the counter and began to scoop out the mint chocolate chip into a bright pink bowl.

"Ma," she corrected.

"What?"

"Carol is my mom and Sarah is my ma," she explained. "It just made it easier growing up to use two different names."

"Oh," Josh replied.

"You know, it would be like if you had two people named Lori in the house."

"Two Lori's? Ugh," Josh moaned. "That would be…terrible."

Andy playfully poked him in the ribs. She grabbed a bottle of hot fudge and poured it over her ice cream.

"You don't have to stay if you don't want to," she said quietly.

"I want to stay," Josh quickly answered. "That is, if you want me to. I don't want to ruin the tradition you have with your moms."

"What about your mom? Won't she notice that you're gone?"

"Trust me, I hate to admit it, but if anyone can come up with a cover story it's Lori. I'm good for at least the next eight hours."

"Then why haven't you started making your sundae?"

"Because I'm afraid if I get too close to you, your ma will have me in a headlock before you could even say ice cream," Josh answered, walking around the counter.

He began scanning the choices – chocolate chip cookie dough, double fudge brownie, strawberry, and, of course, mint chocolate chip. He made a mental note that it was Andy's favorite.

"She's just…overprotective. She wants me to stay her sweet, innocent, little girl forever."

"When were you ever sweet?"

This time she hit him square in the gut. He grabbed his stomach, pretending to be in pain.

"She sees you as a threat," Andy continued, digging two spoons out of a nearby drawer.

"Trust me, I'm more scared of her than she is of me."

"There's nothing to be afraid of. Besides, just start talking G-Force and you'll be fine."

"G-Force?"

"Yeah, mom loves it."

"Your mom plays G-Force?"

Andy began to walk away.

"Sure," she said, "how do you think I got so good?"

Author's Note:

Well, considering I had no idea what this chapter was going to be about, I ended up actually really liking it. Only a few more chapters to go!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Andy couldn't help but laugh as Sarah cursed at the television. Josh, with a smug look on his face, had defeated her again at G-Force.

"You're losing your touch, ma," Andy remarked.

She was sitting on the couch with her mom behind Josh and Sarah who, at some point over the last two hours, had gone from making small talk sitting on opposite sides of the sofa to sitting on the floor shoulder to shoulder playing G-Force. Their empty ice cream bowls were scattered around them along with empty cans of soda that Carol had gotten for them to quench their thirst.

"Well now I know what you two do all day," Sarah said, putting her controller down on the floor.

"Just for the record," Andy added. "I always beat him."

"Not always," Josh piped up.

"You play a mean game, Mr. Tregar," Sarah complimented, shaking his hand.

"Thanks Ms…Mrs…" he stumbled, trying to think of the appropriate term. Was there an appropriate term when it came to referring to your girlfriend's lesbian mother?

"Just call me Sarah," she said, winking at him.

"You're not too bad yourself," Josh stated, wondering where his sudden boldness came from. He might have still been slightly afraid of Sarah, but he was quickly learning that she wasn't just an average adult he had difficulty speaking to. He found that he could speak to her like one of his friends.

"Well, when you have two sons, you learn more about video games than you've ever wanted to know."

"Now that would be a good showdown," Andy stated. "I'd like to see you play Adam and Aaron, Josh. You think I'm good, but they could beat you in two minutes flat."

"Bring it on," Josh challenged jokingly.

"When they come home for winter break, I'll tell them you said that."

"Well, video games aside," Carol interrupted, never having played a video game in her life and finding the topic utterly boring. She had sat through the last two hours because she knew that it was important for Andy that Josh feel comfortable in their home and playing video games seemed to be the best ice breaker. "Andy, we have a surprise for you."

Carol reached behind the couch and picked up a bright yellow gift bag. She handed it over to Andy.

"You didn't have to get me anything," Andy said, placing the bag on her lap.

"We know, honey, but we just wanted to show you how much we love you," Sarah replied.

Andy looked at the present, not with the usual excited feelings that come with getting a wrapped gift. For the past two hours, sitting with the three people she loved most in the world, she felt like the cancer inside of her didn't exist. But seeing the present wrapped in its bright, perfect, yellow bag, reminder her that the cancer was slowly destroying her body. She couldn't explain why she made the connection between the two. After all, her mothers gave her the present not to remind her of her cancer, but to take her mind off of it and to make her feel better. But she just wanted to be normal. She wanted nothing more than for people to treat her as normal. She didn't want to be showered with presents and comforting words. She wanted to be cancer free so everything in her life could go back to normal.

"Aren't you going to open it, honey?" Carol asked.

Andy began to slowly pull the blue and green tissue paper out of the bag, throwing it haphazardly on the floor. She reached inside and took out a coloring book. As she flipped it over to look at the cover, she smiled.

"The Little Mermaid," she said quietly, gazing at the familiar, red-headed, green-finned character. She had watched the movie dozens, if not hundreds of times.

"Thank you," she whispered, hugging her mom. She realized she probably should have been embarrassed with Josh sitting in the room with her, but she knew somehow he would understand even if he was totally clueless as to why she was getting such a gift.

"Keep opening," Sarah prompted, placing her hand on Andy's knee.

Andy put the coloring book on the couch beside her and continued to dig through the gift bag until her fingers touched fabric. Pulling it out, she held the object up to get a good look at it. A tear came to her eye.

"You remembered," she whispered.

"Of course we did," Sarah responded, slipping up onto the couch to sit between Andy and Carol. Andy hugged both her mothers tightly, clutching the shirt to her chest.

Josh remained on the floor, realizing that the moment should have been awkward, but it wasn't. He felt as comfortable with Andy and her moms as he did with his own family. He had no idea what was on the shirt or why it was so special to Andy and her family, but he didn't need to know. He was content just being there, sharing the moment with them.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Carol asked, wiping her eyes. She let go of Andy and Sarah. "Let's color!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air.

Andy giggled as Carol leapt off the couch, ran out of the room, and was back before Josh even knew what was going on. She dropped a medium-sized cardboard box by Josh's feet and then kneeled on the floor. She threw the lid of the box and started taking various coloring books and boxes of crayons from the box and laying them out on the floor.

"I told you this was silly," Andy whispered in Josh's ear as she lowered herself to the floor and sat beside him.

"It's not silly," he said. "It's great."

Carol and Sarah each settled on the couch with their coloring books and a 96 box of crayons to share. Josh picked up a coloring book of giant trucks and leaned against the love seat. Andy took her Little Mermaid coloring book and grabbed a box of crayons. She crawled over to where Josh was sitting. He assumed that she would just sit next to him, but instead, she picked up his arm and scooted back so that she was leaning against his torso. She entwined her fingers with his and wrapped his arm around her. Josh panicked, knowing that Sarah was watching them, but when no one said anything, he calmed and began to color.

Author's Note:

Okay, I know this one was shorter than the chapters usually are, but, as I said, I didn't expect this story to be so long so I'm trying to figure out what's coming next! As for mentioned Andy's brothers – I wanted to at least mention them because Andy states that she has brothers in the scene where she meets Josh in the bathroom and I wanted to stay consistent with the TV show.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Andy looked down at the page she had just colored. It was a picture of the scene from The Little Mermaid when Ariel and Eric were floating on a lake in a rowboat. Even though Ariel's voice had been taken by Ursula, the wicked sea witch, Eric still had love in his eyes for the woman he barely knew who sat across from him. Andy couldn't help but think that Josh was her Eric, but instead of having no voice, Andy had something inside of her that could very well prevent them from being together. She hoped, that like Ariel's lack of voice, they could both overcome it. She knew that finding a prince charming was just a silly fantasy that every little girl had and eventually had to grow out of, but she still wanted to think that her prince charming was out there somewhere. As she felt his fingertips graze her cheek, she knew that she had already found him. He was sitting right beside her.

She put the finishing touches of dark red highlights in Ariel's red hair and stifled a yawn. Despite the nap that she and Josh had taken, she was still tired.

Carol smiled as she watched Andy run her hand up Josh's arm before putting her red crayon back in the box and closing her coloring book.

"I think I'm going to call it a night," Andy announced, yawning again. She hadn't realized just how tired she was. "I'm exhausted."

"And no wonder, it's nearly 11:30," Carol said, looking at the clock. "We should have all been in bed hours ago. We have a…big day tomorrow."

Andy hated the phrase 'big day.' It made it seem like they would be taking a trip to somewhere exotic and exciting, rather than a hospital that smelled like a mixture of death and peroxide.

Carol and Sarah both stood and Josh noticed they reached for each other's hands.

"Josh, you're welcome to stay for the night," Sarah stated as they both began to put away their coloring books and crayons.

"Oh…well…thanks," Josh stuttered, not exactly sure how he was supposed to respond to his girlfriend's mothers approving of him sleeping over.

Andy stood up, smiling at her mothers. She knew that, under normal circumstances, they probably wouldn't have extended the invitation to Josh, but she knew that they realized that Andy needed him. Being with him was obviously good for her.

"Have a good night, honey," Carol said, walking over to Andy and giving her a big hug. Sarah joined the hug and kissed Andy on the top of her head.

"Remember, if you…need anything, we're only two doors down," Sarah whispered as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Thanks ma," Andy replied quietly. They held each other tightly. Carol gave Andy's hand a squeeze.

"We love you, you know that, right?"

"I know," Andy said. "I love you, too."

Although Andy's mothers told her that they loved her every night before she went to bed, tonight was different. Any time she went in for treatment or an important test, they would continue their nightly ritual by telling her that they loved her, but their tone of voice was always urgent and often full of fear. It was like her mothers wanted her to know without a doubt that she was loved. She wished she could get them to understand that they didn't need to say it because she already knew and when they did say it with such urgency and fear, it scared her.

"Everything's going to be okay," Andy whispered. "I know it is."

She could hear them both sniffling as they reluctantly let her go. She hated that they cried over her.

"Goodnight," Sarah said.

"Goodnight," Andy replied.

They both walked away hand in hand. Andy stood where they left her, looking after them.

"You okay?" Josh asked, standing up.

"Yeah," she said as she turned towards him. "They're just scared."

"It's okay to be scared," Josh replied, reaching for her hand. "As long as you don't let that fear define who you are."

"Who are you and what did you do to my insensitive boyfriend?"

He smiled and brushed his lips lightly against hers.

"I like how you say boyfriend," he whispered against her lips. "And I can be sensitive when I want to be. Just don't tell Lori."

"I promise I won't say a word."

This time, she kissed him.

"Do you realize that your moms basically gave me permission to sleep over?" He asked when their kiss had broken.

"My moms can be pretty cool," Andy told him, nuzzling her head against his neck. "But you don't have to stay."

"Does that mean you don't want me to stay?"

"Do you want to stay?"

"I asked you first."

Andy smirked. "Yes, I want you to stay, but only if you want to. And only if your mother won't ground your butt when you get home tomorrow because I don't want to have to go a whole week or longer without seeing you."

"Trust me, I wouldn't be able to go a whole week or longer without seeing you."

"You might think differently after tomorrow," Andy said quietly, averting her eyes from his.

Josh placed his hands on the sides of her face, stroking her cheeks with his thumb.

"Andy, look at me," he said.

She looked deeply into his eyes.

"I will be there for you no matter how hard it gets, no matter how long it takes. I need you to believe that."

"I do," she replied.

"Then why are we still down here and not up in you room yet?" Josh asked, raising his eyebrow.

Andy reached for his hand as they walked together towards her bedroom. Josh couldn't decide what he was more excited about – seeing Andy's bedroom for the first time or being alone in her bedroom for the first time.

"Oh, hang on," she said, letting go of his hands and racing back to the couch. She grabbed the shirt her mothers had given her and walked back over to Josh, holding his hand once again.

"Just one question," Josh began as they walked off down the hall.

"Yeah?"

"What's on the shirt?"

Author's Note:

Sorry it's taken me so long to update. Life's been pretty hectic recently. But, there's only one chapter to go and I'll post it as soon as I can! Please don't forget to review!


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

Instead of answering him, Andy just held tightly to his hand and led him down the hallway. Immediately Josh knew which door was hers. It was covered from top to bottom in a collage of pictures. As Josh tried to look at everything all at once, he recognized a number of feminist and gay pride symbols, dozens of torn-out pages from various magazines, photographs of her family, bumper stickers supporting her favorite causes, and more.

"Wow," Josh commented.

"I like pictures," she stated, shrugging.

She reached for the doorknob and turned it slowly. As they entered her room and Andy turned on the light, Josh smiled. The room was perfectly Andy. The walls were painted a deep maroon and the hardwood floor beneath their feet was covered with a variety of mismatching throw rugs, some of which had polka dots while others had stripes. It was as if nothing matched in the room, but it all somehow came together perfectly. Her bed was unmade, but the rest of her room was relatively neat. Almost every available space on the walls was covered with some kind of picture or poster. Josh loved the fact that she had so many photographs of her family surrounding her even if he didn't quite know why that little fact about her touched him so deeply.

"It's…awesome," he finally said after trying to take everything in. He knew, though, that he could spend all day in there and still not see every detail. And he wanted to see everything. He wanted to know everything about her.

"I know, it's…a lot," Andy admitted. "But I love it."

She had been nervous about Josh seeing her room for the first time. Her room was so personal to her. It was a sanctuary that even her mothers rarely entered, no matter someone she wasn't related to, but as she watched Josh looking around with a smile on her face, she knew she had nothing to worry about. It was as if he belonged there with her.

Josh let go of her hand and walked over to a small desk that held her laptop along with a number of framed photographs.

"You were a cute kid," he complimented, pointing out a picture of her sitting on a painted carousel horse, waving to the camera. She looked to be only about six or seven years old, but Josh could already see the softness and beauty behind her eyes that was still there today.

"Thanks," Andy said, putting the T-Shirt she had in her hands down on the bureau across from her bed.

"Are those your brothers?" Josh asked, looking at yet another picture. This one was obviously more recent since it was a picture of them playing some kind of video game.

"Yeah. I took that photo last year. Aaron still yells at me because he says that the flash from the camera made him lose the game."

"They're…twins?"

Andy nodded. "When my moms decided they wanted to adopt, they were only looking for one son, but they couldn't stand the idea of separating them and they just fell in love with them. They were four when my moms adopted them. Now they're both at college."

"Do you see them often?"

"Holidays mostly. They were both going to come home when they found out about…" she couldn't bring herself to say it. You know, they started with the whole 'we're your big brothers and we're going to protect you thing,' but I told them to stay at school. They'll come to visit in a few weeks, though."

"Are they the type of brothers who'll kick their little sister's boyfriend's butt?"

"As long as you don't break my heart, I think we'll be all set."

"That'll never happen."

His eyes scanned the desk and landed on a picture in a wooden frame. He picked it up off the desk and stared at it. The picture was of him, dressed in his uniform from The Rack, standing at the juice counter. His face was turned away from the camera.

"Where did this come from?" He asked, holding it out to her.

Andy's cheeks turned red. She had forgotten all about that picture.

"I took it," she answered simply.

"Obviously you took it, but when?" He questioned. As he placed it back down on the bureau, he realized that he didn't have any pictures of her and it made him wonder why he had never thought to take one.

"If I tell you, do you promise not to think it's creepy?"

"I could never think you're creepy," he insisted. "A little strange, but not creepy."

She took a deep breath. "I took it before I even really knew who you were."

"What?" Josh asked, confused.

"It must have been one of your first days working at The Rack. I saw you cursing out the latte machine and you just looked so…darn cute that I had to take a picture."

"Even though you had never spoken to me in your life and you didn't know who I was?"

"I told you it was creepy," she stated.

He shook his head as he pulled her close to him, resting his hands on the small of her back.

"It's not creepy. I think that is the sweetest, most romantic thing anyone's ever done."

She smiled. "Well, I can't explain why I took it. It's just like I knew that I wanted you before I even knew I wanted you."

He began to kiss her neck. "And that is the most romantic thing anyone's ever said."

He crushed his lips against her, encouraging her to open her mouth to him. She felt his tongue battling hers. Before she even realized they were moving, her legs hit the bed and they fell, toppling together onto the rumpled covers. She buried her hand in his hair as one of his hands was pinned underneath her and the other rested at her waist. He could feel the hem of his shirt against the waist of her Jeans. He ever so slightly pushed her shirt up, exposing a small amount of skin. He let his fingers graze over the new discovery before he began to push a little further. Her shirt slipped past her navel as his hand continued its ascent.

"Josh," Andy panted as their kisses became more frantic and heavy. She had meant for his name to come out more as a warning, but instead it rang out more as a moan. "Josh, I think we should…" She felt his fingers touch the lace of her bra. "Stop."

Josh sat up slightly as he removed his hand from under her shirt.

"I'm sorry," he said, pushing a strand of her hair away from her face.

"No, I'm sorry," she replied, feeling completely embarrassed. She sat up. "I know you must think I'm sending mixed singles after I basically took off my shirt for you this afternoon and now…now I'm asking you to stop, but…"

"You don't have to explain, Andy," Josh assured her. He picked up her hand and kissed it. Even though she thought he was, he wasn't angry with her. He respected her and her decision to change her mind and he certainly didn't want to push her into anything she wasn't ready for, especially with her moms sleeping just two rooms away.

"Yes, I do," she insisted. "It's just…earlier when I thought we wouldn't see each other for a long or maybe never again, I just wanted to make it special and…and to remember being together and now…now I know we have time and I just don't want to jeopardize our relationship because we're moving too fast. And I don't want to do anything that we might regret later. Not to mention that I have to be at the hospital at eight o'clock tomorrow morning and it'll probably help if I'm not completely exhausted."

"Correction, we have to be at the hospital at eight o'clock tomorrow morning," he stated, squeezing her hand, "and, besides that, I agree with you."

"You do?"

"Andy, despite what everyone thinks about the average teenage boy, we can contain ourselves sometimes, you know."

She smiled. "Thank you for understanding." He kissed her cheek. "We should get ready for bed."

"Unless you've got some severely oversized clothes in that closet of yours, I'd say I'm about as ready for bed as I'm going to be."

"I'll get you something of my brother's to wear," Andy said, sliding off the bed. "And you should call your mom."

"I told you, Lori'll cover for me," he insisted as Andy made her way to the door.

"And I told you – I don't want to go a week without seeing you when your butt gets grounded."

Andy opened the door.

"Alright, alright, I'll call her," he stated, taking his cell phone out of his pocket.

Andy took one last look at him before disappearing into the hallway.

Author's Note:

Alright, I thought this was going to be the last chapter, but obviously my muses had a different idea. It's amazing how much writing I can get done when I have an entire day off from work and class. Well, I guess this means there's still one chapter left! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed this story! I love reading your comments!


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

"Thanks, mom," Josh said into his phone. Andy slipped into the room, closing the door behind her. "Yeah, I love you, too." She placed a pair of mesh shorts and a T-Shirt on her bed and put a small container of blue paint on her bureau next to where she had put the T-Shirt her mothers had given her. "Okay, bye."

Josh hung up the phone.

"So, are you grounded?" Andy asked.

"Let's just say that if it weren't for the fact that my mom totally loves you, I would be."

"Is she okay with you staying over?"

"Well, let's just say that I forgot to tell her that we'd be staying in the same room."

Andy smiled as she pulled out a tank top and green and pink striped pajama pants out of her bureau.

"I brought you some clothes," Andy said, pointing to the bed.

"Thanks," Josh replied, walking over to the bed.

Andy faced her bureau once more, turning her back to him. She bit her lip nervously as she began to unbutton her shirt. Josh watched her intently for a moment, wondering what she was doing. When her shirt fell to the floor, he gasped. She heard the quiet noise escape his lips and she began to second guess her decision to change there in front of them. Then again, she knew that allowing Josh to be with her when she battled her cancer would bring them closer than any two people could be and they had to learn to be comfortable with each other in every situation. That, and she enjoyed teasing him.

She kept her back towards him as she reached to unhook her purple bra. Josh watched as she threw it carelessly to the floor. He knew that he probably shouldn't be staring. Not that he could see anything anyway, but he still felt somewhat voyeuristic. Then again, Andy was the one who started taking off her clothes in front of him.

She pulled the green tank top over her head and adjusted it before reaching for her Jeans. She pulled them off in one motion. Josh couldn't help but stare at her behind, which was covered by a rather lacy pair of purple underwear, which Josh realized matched the bra she had been wearing seconds earlier.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Tregar," she began as she pulled the pajama pants up and over her hips, "stop staring at my butt."

She turned around, her eyes sparkling and her lips turned upward in a smirk.

"Are you trying to kill me, woman?" Josh asked.

"Maybe just a little," Andy replied as she picked up the bottle of paint that she had brought in.

"What's that for?" Josh questioned.

"Painting."

"Andy, it's nearly midnight. I don't know if it's quite the right time to start painting."

"It's not for me. It's for you."

Josh looked at her quizzically and Andy walked over to her closet. She opened the door and pushed all of the hangers to one side. She reached for the very last shirt. She stood for a moment, simply staring at it. It had been a long time since she had seen it, but the memories it held still remained strong in her mind.

"I was diagnosed with cancer when I was ten," she explained quietly, clutching the shirt. "My moms were…devastated. Sometimes when I think about it, all I can see is them crying. There were always tears. I don't even think I really understood it all, you know, but I knew that it was bad." Andy could feel the tears forming in her eyes. "And then I started the chemo and the treatments and…it was so hard. It was harder than anything you can ever imagine. And when I would see my moms crying, I knew it was because of me and sometimes…sometimes I just wanted to give up because I was so tired of fighting and I thought that if I just let go, they'd stop crying."

Josh wanted to walk over to her and hug her and tell her that everything was going to be okay, but he didn't move.

"And then one morning, I had had an awful round of chemo the night before. I was constantly throwing up and the headaches were…unbearable. And in walked my moms, smiling. I hadn't seen them smile in so long and it just made me so…happy. I know now that they were just smiling because they wanted to be strong for me, but they handed me this shirt. They told me that whenever I felt bad, whenever I felt like I couldn't keep fighting, whenever I felt like there was nothing to live for, to look at the shirt of all the people I loved, all the people who loved me, and I'd know what I was fighting for."

Andy turned around, revealing the shirt to Josh. It was a simple, white cotton T-Shirt with four sets of handprints on it, one for each member of Andy's family. They were all a different color and each print had the name of the person whose hand it was below it.

"I know it's just stupid handprints, but, after they gave me the shirt, I got better. I wore the shirt night and day for weeks and I know it wasn't the shirt that made me better, but every time I felt like dying, I looked at it and I knew that I was going to be okay. It gave me hope." Andy wiped the tears from her cheeks. "You must think I'm stupid." She hung the shirt back in her closet as Josh closed the gap between them and reached for both her hands.

"You, Andy Jensen, are not stupid. You're amazing and strong and beautiful. And I think the shirt is…perfect."

"Well, it's almost perfect," Andy whispered.

She let go of Josh's hands and grabbed the shirt from the bureau. She held it out, showing it to Josh. Both her mother's handprints, one in yellow and one in orange were towards the top of the shirt with the words ma and mom written respectively. Her brothers' handprints, much bigger than the ones they had left on her shirt from when she was a child, were towards the bottom also with their names written below. In the middle, there was a large, empty spot with one simple word written, 'Josh.'

"Your moms made this for you?"

"I guess they knew how important you were to me."

"And you're sure you want my handprint on the shirt? I mean, I know this is sort of a family thing."

"It's supposed to be a shirt to remind me of all the reasons to live. I can't think of a better reason to live than you."

Josh didn't know how to respond. He simply nodded as Andy laid the shirt down flat on the floor. She picked up the bottle of blue paint and squeezed some of it onto Josh's hands. He rubbed his hands together until the paint covered them. He placed his hands in the center of the shirt above his name. He held them there, longer than necessary, but he wanted to make sure that the shape came out. He wanted her to remember that he would always be there for her.

"Thank you," Andy whispered as he picked his hands up. Josh reached to wipe a tear from her cheek, but she pulled away. "Uh-uh," she said, smiling. "Not until you clean up." Smirking, Josh playfully lunged for her, but she darted out of the way.

"You. Bathroom. Now."

Andy pointed to her bedroom door.

"You take all the fun out of everything," Josh said, joking.

"I promise you that when this is all over it'll be worth the wait."

"Pinky swear?" Josh asked, approaching her with his pinky finger outstretched.

"Go!" Andy shouted, shoving him towards the door.

Josh gave her a wink before exiting her room. Sighing, Andy slid the shirt across the floor so that it wouldn't be in the way, but that it could still dry flat. Realizing just how exhausted she was, she laid down in her bed. Normally the night before chemo began meant one thing – staying up all night nervously waiting the next morning. But, for the first time, she felt like everything really was going to be okay. She closed her eyes.

When Josh opened the door minutes later, with clean hands, he could tell that she was already sleeping. He smiled to himself as he approached the bed. She was lying on her left side towards the edge of the bed, giving him plenty of room to scoot in next to her. Josh quickly discarded his clothes and changed into her brother's clothes. He slowly climbed into bed with her and pulled the sheet and blanket over both of them. He tried to do the least amount of moving possible, but he desperately wanted to hold her. He laid one arm across her waist as he played with the ends of her hair with the other hand.

"Mm…" Andy moaned, snuggling against to him. He slipped his arm underneath her as she rested her head against his chest. He placed his leg over hers as he pulled her even closer to him.

He listened as her breathing slowed and regulated and he realized that no matter what obstacles they had to face, one thing would always be true.

"I love you," he whispered, planting a light kiss on her forehead.

"I love you, too," she replied quietly before she fell into a peaceful, deep sleep.

Author's Note:

Okay, wow, my nice short little one-short turned into a 10 chapter story! This story actually went places that I never expected to, which just makes me realize that no matter how much planning I do, sometimes stories take on a life of their own. A big thank you to all of my reviewers because you all are the reason why I kept this story going and really wanted to make it the best it could be. I've already got a few more Jandy stories in the works and some more floating around in my head so be on the lookout!


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